The Rake
The Rake is the name of a creature with very little information about it with several references in folklore and horrific urban legends, originally appearing on the internet in a Creepypasta of the same name. It is described by original reports as a "naked man, or a "large hairless dog of some sort," with a body position that seemed "unnatural as if it had been hit by a car or something." It will appear in the middle of the night sitting at the end of people's beds and they will wake up to see it sitting there in the darkness of their bedrooms. It will also stalk a person for years, learning all it can about them, and even threatening them with information on their family, friends, and personal lives. It is fiercely territorial, and though it usually only attacks when provoked, it has attacked out of malice many times. The creature reportedly attacks humans due to unknown reasons and often causes its victims great psychological trauma as a result. Several theories as to the first development of the Rake point towards internet threads and online discussions; however due to alcoholism, allusions to a creature known as the Rake can be found well before these sources could've developed the idea. The Rake's legend originates from the website 4chan. In 2005, an anonymous user posted a thread where he uploaded many ideas of new monsters to the website. In particular, one stood out, resulting in the user creating a new post regarding more ideas about the creature. In the new post, the user just described the photography in his own words. Eventually, the photo got its name "The Rake". The story and mythos went through many changes and alterations in the beginning. One of the earliest stories about the Rake was posted on Something Awful website. On July 20, 2006, it became the first story in a series named "Horror Theater", but theories exist if the text was original or was it taken from another website. The Rake has also been tied to alternate figures, such as the Slender Man, an internet meme and subject of several video games, based on ancient folklore referencing an unnaturally tall and skinny man mysteriously lurking in the woods. It is theorized that the Rake could possibly be a proxy of Slender Man, subject to its own self-mutilation and psychological disorders. A YouTube channel showing images and footage captured of the rake was closed down, but if you search "the Rake caught on tape", you will find a half hour video showing you these episodes. Reproduction by the creature is like what is imagined and visualized in scenes depicted in sci-fi films such as "Alien" past and present. This humanoid life-form was never detected to be mammalian nor, reptilian. Yet in a recent video clip on YouTube, the YouTube video clip clearly exhibits and shows how the creature reproduces by opening the host's mouth and releases its protozaires ingested by french-kissing. By exchanging fluids, the elongated cylindrical protozoaire moves into the host as the creature grasps around the mouth cavity to ensure its smooth rapid movement into the esophageal tract downward. Then the Rake releases its grip of the host with the protozoaire nesting inside. The gestation period is probably lengthy. And horrific. Although scientifically no stranger than seeing the presence of horse hair parasites living inside a praying mantis by placing it in water. Yet this is not a worm parasite but a living pupa which evolves into a fully developed humanoid "Rake." Though, perhaps being somewhat more speculative to nature what the protozoaire function is inside the host while it is growing and changing. To describe how the protozoaire is nourished and fed by the host, a) it's fed by the host until maturated, b) once fully developed it releases itself from the host or c) the protozoaire feeds on the host until it has matured fully into a 'rake' ... the nothing releases itself from the host's body. With the propagation of this species it is entirely dependent on a living human being, (male vs. female). But, the Rake must nourish itself like Nosferatu. A living vampire-like creature who needs the sustenance of meat and blood, not only human but on small animals as well. Eradication of the species has not been determined by the recent spate of sightings filmed and documented. Some appear less realistic (staged) than the genuine originators. Whether firearms provide enough true protection based on its superior agility, speed, and super-human strength. There is yet no known resolute official guidelines for evasive protection reasoning due to infestation from these creatures. Who settle in dark spaces with ample cavernous conditions allowing it to move freely to and from populated areas that are often settings surrounded by hilly or mountainous forestation. The number of individual classifications for the species is still undetermined. Yet not limited only to the USA in many cases. However, limited in its scope and territorial range for hunting, cohabitation, and regeneration with the same species. Extends to parts of Europe and Asia. According to mythology, stories of the Rake seemingly began in the early 12th century. However, most material documentation or reports have been mysteriously lost or destroyed over the years. The first recorded account of the Rake's existence was a mariner's log written in 1691, identifying The Rake by name. The next account, written in the 1800s, described the Rake as having hollow black eyes and being terrifying in nature. The mariner traveled to the Northern United States from England. The Rake attacked the mariner in his sleep and allegedly demanded they leave, to which the mariner and his crew complied. A Spanish journal entry dated from 1880 came from an individual traumatized by the constant stalking from the Rake and was unable to sleep or relax due to being in constant fear and panic. It is unknown what happened to the author. In 1964 a suicide note was written in which the author detailed having had a similar experience to that of the author of the journal from 1880. The constant stalking and attacks from the Rake along with the fear that the creature was going to torment him horribly caused the author to live in constant paranoia and fear until eventually taking their own life. They left behind two empty envelopes addressed to individuals known as William and Rose, and one loose personal letter with no envelope reading "Dearest Linnie, I have prayed for you. He spoke your name.". Sometime in the summer of 2003, the Rake was allegedly captured on camera and sparked media interest until the creature was mysteriously blacklisted from publication, and all of the records from the event were mysteriously destroyed. Later that year, a team of researchers and investigators began collecting evidence of the Rake and archiving it, which included the aforementioned reports and the following account. An eyewitness account that came from a woman who told about her tragic encounter with the Rake. Her husband woke in the early morning, woke her up, and pointed out a humanoid creature seated at the foot of their bed. The Rake scurried up to the woman's husband and stared at him, then turned around and headed for their children's rooms. The woman and her husband chased after it, only to find it hunched over the body of their daughter (named Clara), covered in blood and having seriously injured the child. The Rake escaped and the woman's husband got the dying girl into the car. He drove to a hospital, but ran the car into a lake on the way there, killing both himself and Clara in the accident. The woman and her son stayed in a hotel for a while after the event then returned home. When they did, the woman began researching the creature and discovered all she could about it, and set up audio monitors in case she could hear it. Eventually, she heard it speaking on the audio device, though she refused to share what it said. She claims that, while she has not directly seen the Rake since the incident, she knows that it has been in her room while she sleeps. As of the time of the incident, the aforementioned investigative team gathered over a dozen material documents and reports of the Rake's existence, which they plan to publish in a book. During the summer of 2003, events in the northeastern United States involving a strange, human-like creature sparked brief local media interest before an apparent blackout was enacted. Little or no information was left intact, as most online and written accounts of the creature were mysteriously destroyed. Primarily focused in rural New York state and once found in Idaho, self-proclaimed witnesses told stories of their encounters with a creature of unknown origin. Emotions ranged from extremely traumatic levels of fright and discomfort to an almost childlike sense of playfulness and curiosity. While their published versions are no longer on record, the memories remained powerful. Several of the involved parties began looking for answers later that year. In early 2006, the collaboration had accumulated nearly two dozen documents dating between the 12th century and present day, spanning 4 continents. In almost all cases, the stories were identical. I’ve been in contact with a member of this group and was able to get some excerpts from their upcoming book. A Suicide Note: 1964 "As I prepare to take my life, I feel it necessary to assuage any guilt or pain I have introduced through this act. It is not the fault of anyone other than him. For once I awoke and felt his presence. And once I awoke and saw his form. Once again I awoke and heard his voice, and looked into his eyes. I cannot sleep without fear of what I might next awake to experience. I cannot ever wake. Goodbye." Found in the same wooden box were two empty envelopes addressed to William and Rose, and one loose personal letter with no envelope: "Dearest Linnie, I have prayed for you. He spoke your name." A Journal Entry (translated from Spanish): 1880 "I have experienced the greatest terror. I have experienced the greatest terror. I have experienced the greatest terror. I see his eyes when I close mine. They are hollow. Black. They saw me and pierced me. His wet hand. I will not sleep. His voice (unintelligible text)." A Mariner's Log: 1691 "He came to me in my sleep. From the foot of my bed, I felt a sensation. He took everything. We must return to England. We shall not return here again at the request of the Rake." From a Witness: 2006 "Three years ago, I had just returned from a trip from Niagara Falls with my family for the 4th of July. We were all very exhausted after a long day of driving, so my husband and I put the kids right to bed and called it a night. At about 4 am, I woke up thinking my husband had gotten up to use the restroom. I used the moment to steal back the sheets, only to wake him in the process. I apologized and told him I thought he got out of bed. When he turned to face me, he gasped and pulled his feet up from the end of the bed so quickly his knee almost knocked me out of the bed. He then grabbed me and said nothing. After adjusting to the dark for a half second, I was able to see what caused the strange reaction. At the foot of the bed, sitting and facing away from us, there was what appeared to be a naked man or a large hairless dog of some sort. Its body position was disturbing and unnatural as if it had been hit by a car or something. For some reason, I was not instantly frightened by it, but more concerned as to its condition. At this point, I was somewhat under the assumption that we were supposed to help him. My husband was peering over his arm and knee, tucked into the fetal position, occasionally glancing at me before returning to the creature. In a flurry of motion, the creature scrambled around the side of the bed and then crawled quickly in a flailing sort of motion right along the bed until it was less than a foot from my husband's face. The creature was completely silent for about 30 seconds (or probably closer to 5, it just seemed like a while) just looking at my husband. The creature then placed its hand on his knee and ran into the hallway, leading to the kids' rooms. I screamed and ran for the light switch, planning to stop him before he hurt my children. When I got to the hallway, the light from the bedroom was enough to see it crouching and hunched over about 20 feet away. He turned around and looked directly at me, covered in blood. I flipped the switch on the wall and saw my daughter Clara. The creature ran down the stairs while my husband and I rushed to help our daughter. She was very badly injured and spoke only once more in her short life. She said, "he is the Rake". My husband drove his car into a lake that night while rushing our daughter to the hospital. They did not survive. Being a small town, news got around pretty quickly. The police were helpful at first, and the local newspaper took a lot of interest as well. However, the story was never published and the local television news never followed up either. For several months, my son Justin and I stayed in a hotel near my parent's house. After we decided to return home, I began looking for answers myself. I eventually located a man in the next town over who had a similar story. We got in contact and began talking about our experiences. He knew of two other people in New York who had seen the creature we now referred to as the Rake. It took the four of us about two solid years of hunting on the internet and writing letters to come up with a small collection of what we believe to be accounts of the Rake. None of them gave any details, history or follow up. One journal had an entry involving the creature in its first 3 pages, and never mentioned it again. A ship's log explained nothing of the encounter, saying only that they were told to leave by the Rake. That was the last entry in the log. There were, however, many instances where the creature's visit was one of a series of visits with the same person. Multiple people also mentioned being spoken to, my daughter included. This led us to wonder if the Rake had visited any of us before our last encounter. I set up a digital recorder near my bed and left it running all night, every night, for two weeks. I would tediously scan through the sounds of me rolling around in my bed each day when I woke up. By the end of the second week, I was quite used to the occasional sound of sleep while blurring through the recording at 8 times the normal speed. (This still took almost an hour every day) On the first day of the third week, I thought I heard something different. What I found was a shrill voice. It was the Rake. I can't listen to it long enough to even begin to transcribe it. I haven't let anyone listen to it yet. All I know is that I've heard it before, and I now believe that it spoke when it was sitting in front of my husband. I don't remember hearing anything at the time, but for some reason, the voice on the recorder immediately brings me back to that moment. The thoughts that must have gone through my daughter's head make me very upset. I have not seen the Rake since he ruined my life, but I know that he has been in my room while I slept. I know and fear that one night I'll wake up to see him staring at me." 4/25/11 I awoke abruptly, sweat dripping from my brow. I could feel the presence again. His presence. I looked around my room. I know I’m being watched. It’s not anywhere to be seen. Damn. This is the third night in a row I’ve been awoken like this. The fear is starting to take over my mind. Something out there is stalking me. Something wants me. But I should back up and tell this from the beginning. I’m sixteen years old and moved into this house with my family seven years ago. It’s about 30 minutes outside of town, so we’re fairly isolated. My parents love living out here. They say it’s peaceful and pretty. I hate it. Not as much during the day as during the night. I’ve always been scared of the dark. It’s my number one phobia. I hate not being able to see. And out here at night, there’s no light other than the moon and stars. No warm, comforting glow of street lamps. No headlights slowly moving up and down the streets; just hazy darkness. And it’s especially dark during a new moon. That’s when I first encountered it. That thing. I had a bunch of friends over, and after dark, we all decided to play some airsoft capture the flag. It was a new moon, which made it especially dark and creepy. No light pierced the inky blackness, except the flashlights on the barrels of our airsoft pistols, and the occasional zip of glow in the dark airsoft pellets, flying at their targets. We were all having a great time. I had grabbed the other team’s flag, and was rushing back to my base when I heard a sound that made my blood run cold; a scream of terror, coming from about thirty feet to my right. A flash of white was rushing away from the sound. I changed direction, and rushed towards the noise, aiming my flashlight at the source of the sound. My friend Jacob was sitting in the dirt, holding his bleeding leg, obviously in pain. The cut was deep. Another friend, Matt, and I rushed him inside, where we sat on the edge of the bathtub, and began to wash and dress the cut. We asked him what happened. Some creature had scratched him, he said. He didn’t get a good look at it, but just saw a flash of white. At first, I assumed it was just a possum or something. That was before I saw it again. The second time I was alone. It was the middle of the night, not a new moon thankfully, but still eerie. I had insomnia, a rather common problem for me. It was two a.m. and I had given up all hope of getting any sleep. So I went downstairs to the living room and popped in a DVD. As I lay on the couch, my mind lost in the world of Inception, one of my dogs started barking. I thought nothing of it, barking in the middle of the night is basically a routine for them. Then my other dog joined in, no big deal. But I noticed something. This bark was a lot more menacing than usual. It was more of a guttural, growling bark. The bark dogs make when threatened. I turned on the back porch light, and stepped outside, creeped out. I called for them. “Jake. Zoe. Come here.” Then I saw what they were barking at. It looked like a human, crouched there in the grass. It was probably around four feet tall, with bare, pale skin, and long bony limbs. I studied it for about five seconds and it stared back at me. I’ll never forget its eyes; dark, almost like empty sockets. Its cold gaze washed over me as if it was sizing me up. Then it slowly started to move toward me. I was almost paralyzed by fear but was able to get back in the house. I locked the door behind me and rushed to my parents’ room. They were convinced I had a nightmare. But I know the truth. This was the first time I had fully seen the creature that would soon push me to the brink of insanity. I didn’t see that thing again for quite some time. I started to think that maybe my parents were right, and it was just a dream. I was really sleep deprived after all. But deep down inside, I knew I had seen something. But a few weeks ago I was on some website my friend Derik had recommended. And I saw a picture that shocked me. It was my creature, the one I had seen. The website claimed this creature was called “The Rake,” and that It stalks and mauls its victims. The moment I saw the article my blood ran cold. Could I have really seen this creature? The thought haunted me, refusing to leave my mind. I saw it again for the first time in months last week. I had woken up in the middle of the night again. Immediately, I felt that something was wrong. The house was too quiet. I felt very unsettled. I got out of bed, walked to the window, and raised the blinds. It was very dark outside, but I could make something out. The creature was outside. Scratching at something on the ground. Immediately I opened the window and yelled at the thing. It looked up at me, caught my eyes for a moment, then rushed off, crawling on all fours very close to the ground. When I went out to see what it was scratching at the next morning, I found something that still chills me to the bone; the mangled, half-eaten corpse of my dog Zoe. My parents think it was a mountain lion, but I know the truth. The so-called “rake”, that bastard creature, killed my dog. The last few nights have been terrifying. I’ve woken up in a cold sweat each night, knowing that damned thing is watching me. I feel its presence. I know it wants me now. And I have no idea what to do. I’m terrified beyond belief, and I’m helpless. My parents keep telling me I’m imagining things. But I’m not, dammit! I know what I’ve seen. And I know that it wants me. That’s why I’m writing this down at three in the morning. If anything happens to me, I want people to know what. I’ll update as soon as something else happens. 5/2/11 The last week was a whirlwind of terror. I’m constantly in fear now, I know it’s always watching me. Around every corner everywhere I go. Every night I feel its presence, some nights more than others. I don’t know exactly what it wants from me, but it is wanting something. I saw it again, for the first time in a week today. I stayed home sick. I still feel like shit. I think it’s making me sick. I was laying on the couch, watching TV. Constantly looking over my shoulders, because I know he’s always watching me. I have a shotgun by my side, a benefit of living in the country. I got it from the garage. It’s loaded, in case the thing which I’ve decided to call the rake tries to attack. I knew it would soon. I heard a noise outside and cocked my gun. I stepped outside to investigate. Nothing. Dammit. I decided to patrol the perimeter of the house, just in case. Walked all the way around, nothing. I stepped back inside and the smell hit me. It was the stench of death. Rotting. I held the gun out in front of me. Slowly made my way up the stairs, and turned the corner into my room. It was crouched in the corner, facing away from me. It slowly tilted its head toward me. Then it spoke. It was a high, shrill voice. I’m not sure exactly what it said to me. I didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. But it moved at almost superhuman speed, and barreled into me, knocking me down. I saw it jump off of our 2nd-floor balcony, to the living room floor. Charged out the door. My arm was bleeding bad, so I grabbed a shirt and pushed it to my arm to try to stop the blood. I rushed outside, the gun still in my hand. It was gone. “GO TO HELL!” I screamed. I stepped back inside. And saw the blood. Not my blood. It's blood. I grabbed the dog it hadn’t killed, Jake. Put his nose to the blood. He picked the scent up and started moving toward the woods near my house. I didn’t think twice and followed. We rushed through the woods. Around a mile away from the house, Jake started to whimper. I sent him back. This was my job. I started to explore the area, my finger twitching on the trigger, terrified. After about a half hour of searching, I saw something weird. A small area of ground that was different. It seemed covered up. I walked over and swept away the grass. I was right. There was a board under the grass. I pulled up the board, exposing a hole. A rusty old ladder led down. Against all better judgment, curiosity got the best of me. I slung the shotgun over my back and lowered myself down. I was in a tunnel. It wasn’t well lit. A few candles. But it was light enough to see the blood smeared walls. The smell was awful. I could see paintings in the blood. Disturbing things. Stuff I never wanted to see. I walked through the tunnel toward the source of more light. I could see a sort of room. When I stepped in, I wanted to throw up. There were animal parts all over the floor. On the walls. This must be its feeding room. I turned around, retching. And there it stood, right behind me. It reached toward me. I blacked out. I woke up in my room, about 30 minutes ago now. Alone. No cut on my arm. No blood anywhere. Decided to write everything while it’s still fresh on my mind. Parents still aren’t home. It’s dark outside. I’m terrified to leave my room now. Maybe it didn’t all happen. Maybe I’m going insane. Paranoia is here to stay. I realize what the rake said in my room now when he talked to me. It wants to sacrifice. Mom, Dad, if you read this after I’m gone, then get the Hell away. I don’t know where to but just leave this place. 5/7/11 It’s over now. He’s satisfied. Sacrifice is made. And I’m alone. He was with me three, three, three nights. He just stands next to my bed, watches me, and sometimes he’ll whisper to me. He told me he wanted to sacrifice, bloody sacrifice. He said I had to do it. I knew he was right. They don’t matter to me. I can be alone. My parents thought I was going crazy. Little did they know, haha. So last night, I told him, I told him I’d do it. I’d give him a sacrifice, a good, good sacrifice, so he will be happy. I told them to come with me, I wanted to show them a pretty spot I had found. They walked with me, walked to the Rake hole. I opened it up and pulled out a gun. I told them to go into it. They asked what was I doing, and I told them he wanted to see them. They went in the hole, and we walked through the tunnel. She was crying. Then Mr. Rake came out of his hiding place. He looked at me, with his black eyes and smiled. Then he killed them. They screamed a little bit. I didn’t care. He was happy now. He pointed at the hole, and I knew it was time to leave. I’m back home now. All alone, in my dark room. I’m not scared of the dark anymore. I like the dark. It reminds me of my friend the Rake. I’m okay. I’m okay. Dammit, I’m not okay. I just led my parents to their death. I’m crazy. I have the gun to my head now, I’m going to pull the trigger. I’m looking across my room and he’s crouched there, smiling at me. Telling me to do it, that he’s still hungry, wants one more sacrifice. I’m going to give it to him. Goodbye. August 12, 2009 1:07am I… I don’t know what else to do at this point other than write my story down in hopes that someone will find it. Maybe I will just wake up in the morning, like usual, and rip up this note, realizing that my paranoia has been unjustified. But maybe… maybe I won’t wake up at all, or I will wake up somewhere else, and this note could identify the cause of my disappearance. I guess I should explain a bit. My name is Daniel Matheson, and I’m 20 years old. I live by myself in a tiny house I inherited from my uncle. I shouldn’t have to explain what the exact location is, seeing as this note should be found there… I’m a completely normal if somewhat stressed college student studying Graphic Design, and my everyday life is pretty boring. I don’t have any psychological or medical problems that I’m aware of, and I’ve never been the kind of person to be paranoid. Not to this extent, at least… Last night, I woke up to a kind of… scratching sound. It was faint but ignorable, and I accredited it to the branches of a tree scratching against the outside of my house; I’ve been awoken to such a sound before since several tall oaks border the walls outside of my bedroom. I went back to sleep quickly, but I woke up again just a little while later. This time, the scratching was louder and… rhythmic. Purposeful; I would hear the scratching, then a beat of silence, then scratching again, repeating in a precise pattern. It was quite unlike the irregular scraping sounds caused by branches hitting the house in the wind. The noise was also different in the way that it now sounded like it was coming from my window. Confused and irritated, I forced myself out of bed. At this point, I figured that it might be some kind of animal was trying to get in; I had seen several stray cats around here before, notorious in the neighborhood for clawing at people’s patio doors in hope of getting free food. I turned on my bedside lamp, casting a faint glow around my room, and shuffled over to the window just a few feet away from the end of my bed, prepared to scare the animal away. I screamed. I… I can’t even begin to describe the amount of pure terror I felt when I saw what was sitting outside my window, looking in at me as it raked long, curled nails down the surface of the glass. Thinking back, I wish I hadn’t turned on my light; It wouldn’t have been nearly as horrific if I had left the… the thing shrouded in darkness. In the faint light, though, I could clearly see each detail etched into its horrible, disfigured face; its skin was greyish-blue and lifeless, stretched tight over an emaciated frame, spattered in places with a mixture of filth and dried blood. Its fingers, still pressed to the window, were skeletal and bony, dirt caked under its curved, claw-like nails. Its eyes were pitch black orbs fixed into deep sockets, inhuman and beady. And its mouth… Oh god, its mouth… It had no lips. It was as if someone had torn them completely off, leaving behind a perpetual snarl, nothing to cover the uneven, sharp yellow teeth rooted in its mandible. Somehow, though, it still managed to grin at me; its sallow cheeks lifted slightly, mocking me with a horrific equivalent of a smile. I couldn’t even scream at that point; no sound came from my throat, my vocal cords were frozen. It… it left after it smiled at me, dropping from my view and scurrying away. I haven’t slept since then, despite it being three in the morning when I encountered it. Somehow… I know it will be back. I know it's coming back tonight; I know that it’ll come to me as soon as I fall asleep. I feel it deep in my very soul; I know that that grin meant that it is planning on returning. I don’t want to succumb to my exhaustion, but I’m so fatigued that I can barely write this… I’m nervous but… all I can hope is that this note helps someone learn from my stupid mistake. I, Daniel Matheson, beg whoever finds this… Never, EVER, leave your bed if you hear something scratching outside of your window. And, no matter the circumstance, NEVER TURN ON A LIGHT. I hope I save someone with this; I couldn’t save myself. I can hear the scratching again. It’s even louder than before and more frantic. … I’m going to bed now. Wish me luck. Category:Creepypasta Category:Cryptids Category:Slenderverse Category:Slender Man Mythos Category:Pasta Monsters Category:I Eat Pasta For Breakfast Category:Gen 2 Category:Genderless Category:Males Category:Corporeal Category:Tangible Category:Immortal Category:The Seer Category:EverymanHYBRID Category:WhisperedFaith Category:The Family Category:Evil Category:Inhuman Category:Destructible Category:Sentient Category:Sapient Category:Vulnerable Category:Beings Category:Penetrable Category:Vaguely Humanoid Category:Ambipedal